Tricor: Doesn't Lower Heart Risks for Diabetics

In a recent study known as ACCORD, the drug Tricor, which is taken by many Type 2 diabetic patients to reduce their risk of heart attack and stroke, was proven to be ineffective. The study involved over 5500 patients and did not show that Tricor offered any added benefit to patients who were taking it along with a cholesterol-reducing drug (statin). Results showed that the statin alone was just as effective.

Tricor boosts good cholesterol and lowers triglycerides, supposedly lowering heart attack risk. But lead investigator Henry Ginsberg of Columbia University says that in most diabetics with Type 2 disease, it did not reduce the combined number of heart attacks, strokes and deaths.

Douglas Weaver of the Henry Ford Health System in Detroit says the drug is way overused. He says the drugs purpose is to reduce cardiovascular events in people with diabetes, but the trial suggests that it does not do that.

The drug, Tricor, was FDA approved in 1974. Last year, a new formulation of the drug known as Trilipix was released. At the American College of Cardiology, the Abbott vice president, Eugene Sun, said in a statement that most of the study patients did not qualify to take Tricor, since they didnt have low good cholesterol or high triglycerides. He holds firmly to the fact that in patients who have such issues, the drug does reduce the risk of heart attacks and strokes by 31%.

Chief cardiologist, Steven Nissen, at the Cleveland Clinic, called the analysis unreliable since the subgroup was too small so the results were not trustworthy. Further research is published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

It sounds like the verdict is still out on whether Tricor will continue to benefit diabetic patients. The wisest choice is always to consult your doctor for the most updated facts regarding your medication and continued treatment.